Toward a Natural History of Microbial Life
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Author / Producer
Date
2024-07
Publication Type
Review Article
ETH Bibliography
yes
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Abstract
For most of Earth's history life was microbial, with archaeal and bacterial cells mediating biogeochemical cycles through their metabolisms and ecologies. This diversity was sufficient to maintain a habitable planet across dramatic environmental transitions during the Archean and Proterozoic Eons. However, our knowledge of the first 3 billion years of the biosphere pales in comparison to the rich narrative of complex life documented through the Phanerozoic geological record. In this review, we attempt to lay out a microbial natural history framework that highlights recent and ongoing research unifying microbiology, geochemistry, and traditional organismal evolutionary biology, and we propose six broadly applicable principles to aid in these endeavors. In this way, the evolutionary history of microbial life-once considered only a prelude to the much more storied history of complex metazoan life in the Phanerozoic-is finally coming into its own.
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Publication status
published
Editor
Book title
Journal / series
Volume
52
Pages / Article No.
85 - 108
Publisher
Annual Reviews
Event
Edition / version
Methods
Software
Geographic location
Date collected
Date created
Subject
natural history; molecular phylogenetics; microbial evolution; biomarkers; geochemistry; extinction
Organisational unit
09677 - Magnabosco, Cara / Magnabosco, Cara